Tightener for paper-making wires, felts, and the like.



B. D. COPPAGE.

TIGHTENER FOR PAPER MAKING wmes, FE LTS, AND THE LIKE. APPLICATION FILED JULY ED1917- 1 32,313 Patented Apr. 29,1919.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

B. D. COPPAGE.

TIGHTENER FOR PAPER MAKING wmEs, FELTS, AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FlLED JULY 27.1917.

Patented Apr. 29, 1919.

2 SHEETS-HEET 2.

"entrain snares Partner ou w BENJAMTN DENVER GOIPPAGE, 0F WILMINGTON, DELAWARE.

TIGHTENER FOR PAPER-MAKING WIRES, FELTS, AND THE LIKE.

Application filed July 27, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN DENVER CoPrAen, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Wilnnngton, Delaware, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Tighteners for Paper-Making ires, Felts, and the like, which invention is fully set forth in the following specification.

This invention relates to tighteners for paper-forming wires and paper-carrying felts which are subject to extensions and contractions due to variations in temperalure, content of moisture or other conditions such as occur in paper making, and has for its object to provide an automatic device to apply a predeter -iined tension and to maintain the same constant without attention of an attendant.

In paper-making machines of the Fourdrinier type, an endless paper forming-wire is employed which is caused to travel by frictional contact with power-driven rolls and is given a certain tension by means of a wire-tightening roll provided with handoperated vertically adjustable bearings. It is not unusual to find in a modern papermaking machine a forming-wire of bronze 70 feet long. When a wire of this character is subjected to variations of temperature such as that occurring when the wire is taken from the store-house and placed upon a machine in a room where the stock is fed onto the wire at a lower temperature, a drop of 80 F. is not unusual. The result is a shrinkage in the length of the wire and sometimes this shrinkage is too rapid to permit an operator to properly adjust the tension roll bearings, or he may not even observe the increasing tension until it is too late to make adjustment. The wire either immediately ruptures or is slowly pulled apart, the replacement of which costs many hundreds of dollars. Further, formingwires for large paper-making machines are of such width that the length of the selvages often differ to an appreciable extent and prevent proper tensioning back and front re sulting in imperfections which subsequently appear in the web and interfere with subsequent operations.

My invention overcomes the above objections, and secures the above objects and resides in providing, in connection with a contractible and extensible forming-wire or belt, a tension roll acting by its weight to Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 29, 1919.

Serial No. 183,197.

apply tension to the belt and supported in bearings in rocker arms which are provided with counter-weights to reduce the effective weight of the roll on the belt. The rocker arms are preferably provided with manually adjustable supports such as commonly employed for supporting the tension roll. By reason of this construction, the roll is permitted to float on the forming-wire, rising and falling automatically as the tension increases or slackens while applying any predetermined tension to the wire. The roll also automatically adjusts itself to positions out of the horizontal and thereby is enabled to apply equal tension to both selvages when one is longer than the other. The present construction also permits of hand adjustment of the tension roll by screw mechanism as heretofore employed, without interfering with the automatic features of my improve ment.

In order that the invention may be more readily understood, reference is had to the accompanying drawings illustrating, by way of example, a mechanical embodiment of the inventive idea. Such drawings, however, are intended to assist the description of the invention and not to define the limits thereof.

In said drawings:-

Figure 1 shows in side elevation a portion of the Fourdrinier part of a paper-making machine including the wire-tightening roll provided with my improvement; and

Fig. 2 is a plan view of Fig. 1.

In Fig. 1 is shown a portion of an endless liourdrinier wire 1 passing over table rolls 2 mounted on a shaking table 3, one end of which is supported on a standard 4 and continues over suction boxes 5. The return portion of the wire passes over guide roll 6, under tension roll 18 and over guide roll 6. At each side of the machine are positioned upright supports 7, each of which is provided with a guide recess 8 shown in Fig. 2, in which moves a non-rotatable threaded block 9 on a threaded shaft or spindle 10. The lower ends of these shafts 10 are provided with bevel gears 11 which mesh with gears 12 on a connecting shaft 13. Rotation is imparted to shaft 13 to raise and lower blocks 9 on shafts 10 by means of a handle 14; having drive-connections with shaft 13, shown as consisting of a chain 22 and sprocket wheels 23, 23. Each of the blocks 9 is provided with an arm 15 adapted at its end to receive a rocking bracket-bearing 17 coupled thereto by a fulcrum pin 16. This bearing supports tension roll 18 which may be removably held in position by any suitable retaining means. Secured to bracket 17 is a lever arm 19 adapted to receive Weights 20 to more or less counterpoise the Weight of the tension roll.

The operation of this device thus far described is as follows Assume that the blocks 9 have been ad justed on their threaded rods 10 by manipulation of handle 14 to position the tension roll 18 approximately in the desired position for tensioning the Wire. Weights 20 are placed on lever arms 19 and adjusted along the arms to points suitable to secure equal tension on both selvages and to the proper degree. The tension device will now Work automatically. The tension roll rises and falls or floats with the Wire as variations in extension and contraction occur, and it also follows the variations taking place in the lengths of the selvages by rocking in a vertical plane transverse of the Web. The position of the long lever arm also performs the duty of a semaphore to indicate to the operator at a glance the tension of the Wire at any time.

What is claimed is 1. In a machine of the character described, the combination of an extensible and contractible belt, a tension roll acting by its Weight to apply tension to the belt, a pair of fulcrumed members each member having a bearing for removably supporting said roll, and an arm for receiving counter-Weights to relieve a part of the tensioning Weight of said roll ofl said belt.

2. In a machine of the character described, the combination of an extensible and contractible belt, a tension roll acting by its Weight to apply tension to the belt, a pair of fulcrumed members each member having a bearing for removably supporting said roll and an arm for receiving counter-Weights to relieve a part of the tensioning Weight of said roll off said belt, and manually operated means for raising and lowering said fulcrumed members.

3. In a machine of the character described, the combination of an extensible and contractible belt, a roll normally resting on said belt and acting by its Weight to apply tension thereto, and means for yieldingly supporting a part of the Weight of said roll.

4:. In a machine of the character described,

the combination of an extensible and contractible belt, a roll normally resting on said belt and acting by its Weight to apply tension. thereto, and vertically adjustable means for yieldingly supporting a part of the Weight of said roll.

5. In a machine of the character described, the combination of an extensible and con tractible belt, tension roll acting by its Weight to apply tension to said belt, and rocking members having bearings for said roll and provided With counter-Weights to Igellieve part of the Weight of said roll on said In testimony whereof I have signed this specification.

BENJAMIN DENVER COPPAGE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner oLP atents,

Washington, D. C. 

